Horses

[HappyDancer]

My little girl has been riding for awhile now and loves it...we are thinking of purchasing one for her and are doing our homework on the subject...does anyone have any sugestions on what breed is best for a little girl, shes 10 and still a beginer

[Scarlette]

I highly recommend a horse that is about 7-10 years old for a beginning rider. By the age of 10 the horse is usually over it's juvenille antics, is usually calm and has alot of experience under it's belt (or saddle ).

Just about any breed is good but I would stay away from more hyper horses like Arabians. With that being said, not all Arabians are "hot", but in my 26 years of riding and being around horses I found Arabians can be a little more hyper and usually not a good choice for beginners. Quarter Horses, Appaloosas, and Paints are usually good choices but in the end it all depends on the horse itself. You could come across a wonderful, laid back, "bomb proof" Arabian that has been used for trail riding all of it's life and also see a wound up, barrel racing Quarter Horse. It all depends on the animal, how they were trained, and what they have been used for.

Also, don't fall into buying a young horse for a young, beginning rider with the thought of "They can grow up and learn together". I've seen that so many times and usually the child gets injured and/or loses interest because they just don't have the ability or knowledge to train a young horse.

Stay away from auctions because you normally find lame or sick horses that are so doped up to hide illness and you get them home and are stuck with a nag with a ton of problems.

Look at alot of horses. Ride the horse yourself and then have your daughter ride it. If you have a riding instructor or a friend with a ton of horse knowledge, take them with you and get their opinion.

Look at how the horse moves. Is it a smooth ride? Generally horses with longer necks ride smoother than a horse with a short neck. Horses with shorter backs normally have less back problems than a horse with a long back.

Look closely at the hooves. Any deep cracks? Are they flat footed? Have they foundered? A bad hoof can mean pain, less time being able to ride and larger farrier bills for corrective shoeing. No hoof, no horse.

After riding the horse stick around and observe them in the pasture or stall. Do they chew? Are the fence posts and trees chewed up? Do they crib? Do they weave back and forth in the stall out of boredom? Do they chew on the stall walls, or worse, on theirself? If they have pasture mates, are they aggressive toward them? Offer them some grain if they're around other horses. Do they pin back their ears and get aggressive with you or the other horses?

That's it for now but I'm sure I'll think of other things in a little while.

[Trickiesmurf]

I am going to rack my brain here. Im going to get back into riding when i finish up at the community college. And possibly when i get done all together move to a farm and get some horses myself. but number one is make sure there broken in. yes young ones are cute but they are wild and need to be trained and its not really like training a dog. you can get seriously hurt doing so. I rode several hourses. Some horses are train more for rodeo style (strictly western) and others are trained for valting which is more english style a jumping. dont get anything younger then 6... the younger they are the more temperment. quarter hourses are mix breeds are more mellow. and if its male get it nutered. they dont spay female ones. If you want a young hourse get ready to spend tons of money on a professional breaking it (since this is you first hourse i dont recomend you doing so).

And i was writing this when Ronda posted so i agree with everything she said

[HappyDancer]

thank you the horses we have been looking at have all been over 7...she learned on a 15 year old. We have talked to alot of rescue organizations and such trying to find one, we have gone to see 3 so far but they were not right for her, she loves to ride, and she loves to groom...the biggest thing is she loves to love them so I want one that she can bond with...we found one thats 12 and shes a real sweet heart, shes actually at the same place where Ashley rides and where I would stable it...Ashley has riden her a few times and we are discussing this one...thank you for all the great advice and help this is a big thing and I want to make sure we all know what we are doing to ensure the horses well being and my daughters safety

[Scarlette]

Good luck and let us know!

[Chrisanne]

Can't add to Rhonda's sound advice.. she's the pro.

Good luck though. Can't wait to see what you get.

[Mallory]

This is a thread I'll have to make sure I follow and keep good track of. One day WAY WAY WAY in the future, I'd love to own a horse, but I never knew about any of the tips you should know when looking for one.

I've gone horseback trail riding a couple times this past year, but nothing what I figure owning your own horse would be like. We'd always get in trouble anyhow! LOL The guide would tell us to please stick closer or not to trot, to make sure we stay on the exact same trail she lead, instead of going around the tree on the other side... haa haa... I guess we were bad, but we were always safe and listened when we knew it was for the better.

I wish I was Ashley! I would have loved to been given the chance to take riding lessons and own my own horse.

Here's a question Rhonda:

If I just lived in a neighborhood that doesn't have large enough acreage for a horse and barn and all, where could I put it?? I noticed Ashley's mom mentioned a stable, but is something like that really expensive???

Also, what is cribbing? And what does a foundered hoof look like??

And this might seem like a really stupid question, but I want to know... How do you decipher between regular behavior and aggression with horses??

There was a girl I used to know who owned a couple horses, and she had a white Arabian named Mariah who was apparently threatening to bite my friends hip. Laura wasn't scared but she eyed Mariah and got nasty with her and Mariah stopped... But to me, it just looked like she was sniffing Laura...

[Scarlette]

Some places will allow you to keep your horse there anywhere from $100 to $300 per month....the cost depends on if you are supplying the feed, cleaning the stalls, ect. Some places may charge more, or less.

Quote: Also, what is cribbing?

A horse will bite onto something and suck in air. If they swallow enough air then they are prone to colic, and some may even lose wieght because they don't feel hungry with a belly full of air. I've had 2 cribbers and it was really tough to keep weight on them. They can also develop a really pronounced muscle on the underside of the neck. Plus, it's VERY annoying!

Quote: And what does a foundered hoof look like??

A foundered hoof is usually more flat on the bottom than a normal hoof. A horse is more likely to founder in both the front hooves. A healthy hoof has a slightly concave shape to the bottom.

Quote: And this might seem like a really stupid question, but I want to know... How do you decipher between regular behavior and aggression with horses??

No question is stupid! An aggressive horse will pin it's ears back and charge at other horses (and people) when there's food and treats to be had. Biting and kicking usually go along with it.

[Chrisanne]

The guy that owns my local feed store just had a mare deliver a foal. It is her first ever, all the ones prior she's miscarried due to her cribbing.

Do you recommend that someone who wants a horse have a "emergency savings account" like we do for our chinnies? If so, generally how much. I was thinking somewhere around $1500.

[Scarlette]

If you keep up on the vaccinations, worming program, hoof trimming, nutrition, ect then horses are usually free of illnesses. Hence the term "healthy as a horse"

Usually emergency vet bills are incurred from accidents, at least the majority of my emergencies are! I try to keep about $500 for any pet emergency and I've been *fairly* lucky so far. I think the most I've spent on a horse emergency was $200, and that included the farm call, stitches, and any meds. Okay, now I'm scared that I just jinxed myself.

[Chrisanne]

LOL! Nah, you didn't jinx yourself.

Around here vets are done at 5pm. Getting them to come out is like pulling teeth. So I guess knowing your area vets practices would aid in that too.

[HappyDancer]

the place I would stable the horse is usually 250 a month ...thats feeding, mucking out the stall and 1 day a week grooming...but if we get Ashley a horse she will groom it daily as well as muck out the stalls, we want to get her a horse and thats a big responsibility so we are taking it one step at a time and Ashley is putting in time at the stable learning to groom fully and to muck out a stall...if we do it all ourselves she will only charge us 125 a month.

We have known this place for a long time Kens sister lives there...its their horse Ashley rides...we just want Ashley to understand the commitment level that goes with this before we go ahead

She does good with the dogs and cat, she feeds them all every morning, fills the water bucket and brushes the dogs every night so I know she is up to the task, I just don't want her to fill trapped...

we are out at the ranch probably 5 times a week, she loves to ride, but when she can't she grooms people horses for them, they all let her learn with their horses as well as teaching her what they know

We are going to see one in a few days thats been trained with kids and they said shes a good starter horse, its a paint thats very pretty, but we want to see her and ride her and all of that...thank you all for the tips and the good thoughts....

thanks all

[Trickiesmurf]

From looking at your pictures i would recomend investing in a riding helmet as well. Always be safe then sorry. horses are animals and they can be unpredictable. This will be important as well once your daughter starts to canter and Trot. I am surprized the stable even lets her ride without a helmet where i learned we were not allowed on the horse if we didnt have one. bike helmets work but riding helmets are better then protect the head better.

[PokeyPokey]

Everyone knows what a regular horseshoe looks like, right? well you want to make sure the horses hoof is shaped like that. The stable I worked at last summer had a thoroughbred gelding. His hoof was shaped...its almost hard to describe, almost like a staple. like ] although had a Slight curve to the edges. He had one really bad and one close. And his hoof was about 50% bigger than his other ones. I was there when the farrier came around and the farrier took his time to teach me everything he could that day. He not only had to have an odd shaped horseshoe but the horseshoe had to have a bar across the back where the opening was, becaue without it his leg would try to bend like a flamingo's! It was horrible.

I wish I was so lucky to have a horse! It's torture for me, because even tho we live in a very populated neighborhood about 1/4 mile down the street there's a family with a barn and a paddock. They used to have cows, but now they have 4 horses. I drive past it almost every day! There's another family with a small paddock thats way overgrown and falling apart. I'm almost tempted to ask them if i fix it up if i could put a horse in it ^^; but hopefully once i graduate my mom will move to TN and get some land! *dancu*
I've loved horses since I was 4! LOL

[Millimi]

You have to remember, I don't know if Scarletter covered this, but the tack also costs a bit of money when first investing. Not all horses come with their own tack and saddles easily can cost above $600.